Chapter 16: Broken or just die?
Qin Cangye barely slept on Saturday night. He sat on the cold floor, racking his brains for how he could keep Nuoruo with him the next night. No, how he could keep himself in Nuoruo's heart.
The hamsters ran to his feet and gnawed at his silk pajamas. Some even climbed up his trouser legs, but rolled down before they reached his knees.
Qin Cangye casually picked up the clumsiest little hamster, placed it in front of him, looked at it distressedly, and said, "I can't think of it, Nunuo. How about I lock you up?"
He looked up at the spacious, simple, yet dimly lit bedroom. His gaze had forged a giant, pure-gold birdcage in the corner. Inside the cage sat a soft velvet bed. His daughter, Nuonuo, dressed in a snow-white nightgown, sat on the fluffy bed, a lovely smile on her face...
On Sunday, Qin Cangye made a reservation at a restaurant called "Small Courtyard" in Beiguang City's Pearl Sea Ecological Park. It was a simple, warm garden restaurant Qin Cangye had invested in and run by a close friend of his mother's.
The restaurant isn't crowded, and the tables are separated by abundant flowers and greenery, with a stream even running through them. Dining there feels like being in the jungle, a truly relaxing and cozy experience.
Qin Cangye chose this place not only because of the restaurant's environment, but also because behind the restaurant there is a safe haven for his mother during her lifetime: a glass greenhouse.
When Qin Cangye was a child, his mother secretly brought him here. The frail woman smiled gently and said to little Qin Cangye, "There are treasures hidden under some flower pots. Let's see if our little friend Yeye can find all the treasures!"
"Okay, Mom!"
Qin Cangye excitedly shuttled between the flower stands. This small room, less than 20 square meters, hid the little boy's rare happy childhood.
The treasure was just some colored glass stones that had been rounded by the sea. After Qin Cangye found them, his mother didn't dare let him take them home, so she made him cover his eyes and hid the glass stones back under the flowerpot.
"Ye Ye, go home. Mom will bring you here next time."
But after this time, there will never be a next time.
More than ten years later, Qin Cangye returned here again and asked someone to build an iron fence to surround the glass greenhouse. The key to the fence was only owned by his mother's best friend and him.
The greenhouse was well taken care of by his mother's best friend, but he never went in again to look for the colorful glass stones of his childhood.
But this time, he thought, maybe he could bring Nuonuo in, maybe Nuonuo would like this childish little game.
In the afternoon, he even went to get his hair done, smoothing down his bangs that were usually combed back to hide the hostility between his brows. He also carefully selected a comfortable beige casual suit and a light brown windbreaker, trying to make himself look more approachable.
He placed an exquisite Bulgari mother-of-pearl necklace in a small velvet box and put it in his trench coat pocket. He didn't know how to choose, but he thought this pure color would match the angelic girl in his eyes.
Everything was ready, but Qin Cangye was still feeling uneasy as he sat in the restaurant.
My mother's best friend Kong Wenxin came over, poured Qin Cangye a cup of hot tea, and said with a loving smile, "Cangye, you're a little different today. Are you going on a date with the girl you like?"
Qin Cangye's face flushed with a rare blush, and he replied a little awkwardly, "Yes, Aunt Kong."
Kong Wenxin was slightly startled. She had only asked casually and teasingly, but she had never expected to receive such a positive answer.
Qin Cangye seldom came to her restaurant. Whenever he did, he would stand outside the greenhouse for a long time with an expressionless face. Kong Wenxin felt sorry for the child and thought that growing up in such a family, it would be difficult for him to have a normal relationship.
Although she was worried, she was powerless. However, looking at his face, which was obviously moved, she felt genuinely happy. She smiled, a smile that was somewhat emotional, and her eyes were wet. She said, "That's good, very good. She must be a good girl. Cangye should treat her well."
"I definitely will, Aunt Kong." Qin Cangye answered seriously.
At seven o'clock in the evening, Qin Cangye heard the sound of high heels stepping toward him. The clean, sharp rhythm made him frown. He immediately stood up and saw Li Jinmiao striding toward him with feigned composure.
Qin Cangye's face darkened visibly.
"Where is Nuonuo?" he asked in a cold tone.
"Please sit down first," Li Jinmiao was a little scared when he saw his tall and oppressive body, so he asked him to sit down in a rare calm tone.
Qin Cangye took a deep breath and closed his eyes.
No one knew the anticipation, panic, anxiety, and torment he had endured this past week. He had already prepared for the worst: if Nuoruo showed up and was dissatisfied with his performance and still decided to end the relationship, he would resort to some trickery to get Nuoruo's contact information and then, through a slow process of getting to know her, win her heart.
But he never expected that Nuonuo would not come.
This unexpected outcome caused a sudden wave of panic in him, causing his self-control to collapse rapidly and all the negative emotions he had been accumulating to explode.
He didn't sit down as Li Jinmiao asked. Instead, he leaned over and tightly grasped the edge of the wooden table with his right hand, his knuckles turning white. He asked, "Didn't you stop her from coming?"
Li Jinmiao quickly backed away, pushing the chair against the floor with a sharp tearing sound. She leaned against the back of the chair and shouted nervously, "No! Why are you glaring at me? She doesn't want to come anymore!"
"No, she promised me..." The veins on the back of Qin Cangye's hand bulged, his gloomy face was pale, and his expression became terrifying and ferocious.
As soon as Li Jinmiao shouted the first word, Zhang Yifeng, who was waiting outside the restaurant, rushed in. Seeing Qin Cangye's terrifying posture and expression, he thought he was going to attack Li Jinmiao, so he immediately stood in front of Li Jinmiao and shouted, "What are you going to do?!"
Qin Cangye was enraged by Zhang Yifeng's roar, and he grabbed the heavy solid wood dining table with one hand and flipped it to the side.
BANG!!! BANG!!!
The snacks, drinks, vases and miscellaneous items on the table all fell to the ground. The loud noise of the table falling to the ground scared everyone in the restaurant. The customers hurriedly dodged away, and the waiters rushed over. Li Jinmiao was protected in Zhang Yifeng's arms.
The atmosphere in the restaurant was extremely tense.
The waiters who ran over did not dare to approach Qin Cangye. After all, they had never seen a person overturn a nearly two-meter-long solid wood table with one hand.
"Li, Jin, Miao," Qin Cangye said word by word, coldly, "If you don't want the Li Group to go bankrupt next quarter, call Nuonuo over immediately!"
"Qin Cangye!" Li Jinmiao, her face pale, gritted her teeth and threw herself at the enemy. She jumped out of Zhang Yifeng's arms, took out the gift Su Yinuo had made, and held it before Qin Cangye's eyes, shouting, "Nunuo didn't want to come! I told you she's my friend. If she wanted to come, would I have stopped her? Nunuo doesn't want to see you, doesn't want to have anything to do with you. Wake up!"
Qin Cangye snatched the small coaster and held it in his hand, his eyes burning from the bright color.
The store manager, Kong Wenxin, finally rushed over, bowing and apologizing to the customers around her as she ran. She came to Qin Cangye, bowed and apologized to Li Jinmiao, and then hurriedly led Qin Cangye out of the store, saying to him as she walked, "Cangye, calm down, calm down, come out with me for a moment."
Li Jinmiao watched the two men leave, collapsed back into the chair, hugged Zhang Yifeng's arm and cried, "I was really scared just now..."
After a while, she calmed down and let go of Zhang Yifeng. She picked up her bag and walked out of the store curiously. She saw Qin Cangye being taken to a glass greenhouse by the store manager.
Kong Wenxin turned on the street light on the greenhouse wall and was about to find the key to open the big iron gate of the wall, only to find that she didn't have the key with her.
"Cangye, are you calm now? Do you need to stay inside for a while? Wait a minute, I'll go find the key."
Qin Cangye didn't respond, staring at the coaster in his hand. He saw the little boy, the hamster, the sunset, and the sea, all gathered in a small picture, each emitting colorful starlight under the illumination of the streetlight.
After Kong Wenxin turned and left, Qin Cangye took out the key from his coat pocket and opened the iron gate. After walking in, he locked the iron gate and squatted down against the glass greenhouse.
Turning over the coaster, he saw the small words: I wish you all the best, and I wish you will have love overflowing the sea in the future.
Something instantly pierced Qin Cangye's heart, creating a gaping hole in his heart. Tears welled up in his eyes, and he threw a punch, slamming it hard against the glass wall of the greenhouse.
The crisp sound of glass breaking was heard, and the cracks on the entire wall spread out like a spider web. Qin Cangye smashed a hole in the tempered glass. When he pulled his hand out, his arm was already covered in blood from the sharp spikes on the glass.
Pain and anger surged in his heart. He looked at the empty and dim greenhouse, as if he saw the scenes of cherished people disappearing from it one by one.
You all left, you all didn't want to stay with me, you all abandoned me, who else can give me love that overflows the sea?
In this garbage world, who can still pity me and cherish me? ! !
The coaster slipped from his hand and he raised his fist again, hitting the shattered glass wall.
Behind him, there was a scream. Kong Wenxin, who hadn't found the key, looked at Qin Cangye, whose hands were covered in blood, and cried, "Cangye, Cangye! What are you doing? Calm down! Someone come quickly, someone come and help me!"
Wu Heng ran over, jumped over the wall in a few seconds, and tried to stop Qin Cangye, but Qin Cangye, who was already out of control, punched him back to the wall and he dared not get any closer.
Li Jinmiao, who was watching all this not far away, dialed Su Yinuo's number with trembling hands.
The pain of the cuts on the flesh seemed to ease the collapse and pain in his heart. The blood spilled on the ground looked as beautiful as a blooming red flower. The dizzy head made it difficult for his angry emotions to find support. After punching himself one by one, Qin Cangye staggered to his knees on the ground, but his heart felt much more relaxed.
It seems like I have let go of all the negative emotions, as well as the passion and expectation to live.
Or just die like this?
These were the only words left in his head, which had lost too much blood.
After an unknown amount of time, the iron gate was smashed open, and a thin figure flew into the wall and came to Qin Cangye. She knelt on the broken glass in front of Qin Cangye and hugged this shattered person tightly in her arms.
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